The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday relaxed restrictions on visits to long-term care facilities ahead of Mother’s Day next week, as no new cases of COVID-19 were recorded for the sixth straight day.
As the disease appears to be abating and Mother’s Day is next week, the center loosened the rules, as limited social interaction affects the mental health of people in the facilities, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the center, told a daily news briefing in Taipei.
Visitors should register with facilities, while each resident should only receive one group of at most three people per day, including children, Chen said.
Photo: Tang Shih-ming, Taipei Times
As the facilities remain high-risk areas for cluster infections, people with suspected COVID-19 symptoms would be barred from entering, he said.
Residents and visitors should wear masks, he said, adding that those who have difficulty walking would be allowed to receive visitors in their rooms.
Those who are able can receive visitors in public spaces in the facility, with only one group allowed in an area at a time, Chen said.
Photo: CNA
Asked if the center would loosen restrictions for hospitals or lift a ban on hostess clubs, Chen said that it would be possible if people continue to follow preventive measures and confirmed cases continue to drop.
The center presented six watermelons at yesterday’s news briefing to mark six consecutive days of no new COVID-19 cases.
After the center on Monday displayed tulips and pancake cookies that were a gift from the Netherlands Office Taipei, sales of the cookies have risen on online shopping platforms.
The center has received many requests about promoting products at its daily news briefing, Chen said, adding that it displayed the watermelons to give domestic crops a boost.
The watermelons were sent by the Council of Agriculture, the council said later yesterday, adding that watermelons are in season this month and people are encouraged to buy them to support local farmers.
Center data showed that as of yesterday, the nation had 429 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with six fatalities, while 324 have been released from quarantine after treatment.
Among them, 343 were imported, 55 were local infections and 31 were sailors from the navy’s Panshih (磐石) supply vessel, the center said.
As yesterday marked the start of the three-day Workers’ Day weekend, Chen said that although the center does not oppose outdoor activities, people should wear masks if they cannot maintain proper social distancing of at least 1.5m indoors and 1m outdoors.
According to a smartphone app operated by the National Freeway Bureau, traffic was moderate and not many people were traveling to the nation’s 200 most-popular tourist spots as of noon yesterday.
However, local government officials said that some places not on the app were attracting a lot of visitors.
Separately, the Bureau of Foreign Trade said that the nation has placed a temporary export ban on 75 percent alcohol hand sanitizer and disinfectant, effective yesterday, a day after a temporary ban on mask exports was extended.
This is to ensure that demand in Taiwan can be met, as shortages of masks, protective clothing and sanitizer continue to plague governments around the world amid the COVID-19 pandemic, it said.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare deemed it necessary to put export restrictions on the two products following an evaluation of the nation’s inventory, a bureau official said, without elaborating.
Starting yesterday, people in Taiwan cannot send the items overseas unless they have authorization from the ministry, the official said.
Additional reporting by CNA
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